Reconstruction: Deleted Scenes
by Jocelyn
Summary: Deleted scenes from Reconstruction, an AU post-Civil War in which the Avengers reunited (whether they liked it or not) long before the events of Infinity War. Interlude: Hangover - Tony and Pepper steal a few steamy hours in the aftermath of Chapter 42 of Reconstruction.


_**Author's Notes:** Here follows a special gift to my dear readers, a mildly porny hurt-comfort between Tony and Pepper in The Hague as Tony processes what the events of Chapters 40-42 of Reconstruction mean for him._

**Interlude: Hangover**

"I really did sleep last night," Tony protested as Pepper half-dragged him into his hotel room.

"Whatever you did, it wasn't enough," she informed him. She sat him down and traced her fingers along the dark shadows under his eyes, the taut way his skin was pulled on his face. He shuddered, eyes closed, and she combed her fingers into his hair. Yes, he might've slept and showered, but whatever had happened yesterday was still haunting him. "Tell me," she whispered.

He opened his eyes and started to shiver again. "They got him, Pep. That guy – the one who tried to trigger Barnes in court, he…he's Hydra. _Long_ time Hydra." Pepper kept caressing his face and waited. "He was there. He was part of it…" Pepper held her breath as Tony worked up to what "it" was: "The 'missions' to kill my dad. Training the Soldier for it. They put people with masks in front of him to kill and beat the shit out of him if he hesitated. It still took 'em three tries over twenty years before he'd do it."

Pepper swallowed hard and pulled Tony into her arms. "Oh my God. I always figured all the ones who planned it were dead."

"Me too." Tony's voice cracked as he buried his face in her shoulder. "But now…we got him, he'll answer…" His voice choked off altogether, and she held him that much tighter.

She couldn't come up with any words of comfort except, "I'm here. I'm here. I love you, Tony Stark." She brushed strands of hair from his face. "It's okay."

He stifled a sob, trying so hard to keep it together and losing the battle. "Why the hell does it feel like this? We _won, _dammit! Someone's finally gonna _pay, _for my parents, for Barnes, for everyone else those fuckers murdered…"

"I don't know," she admitted. "What I do know is we've felt like this every time…we win, or you win, we celebrate, and then it's just…like a hangover without the party. The others are the same, you know. I've noticed it. All of 'em, at one time or another, even Rhodey."

"Yeah. Sometimes I accuse him of being a killjoy like I don't leave the victory parties drunk and get drunker by myself in my room."

"I haven't seen you do that in awhile," she pointed out, and managed not to say aloud, _And now's really not a good time to go back on that habit._

As if she had said it anyway, Tony sighed. "Don't worry, 'm not planning on it. I just hate the way I feel…after. We fight, people die, even when we win. We eat shawarma or pizza and then go back to the old grind, and it's just…sludge."

Pepper kissed his temple. "Leave the sludge behind today. Just be here with me."

"Don't deserve you…"

"Don't say that! I decide who deserves me." Maybe sex would calm him down enough to get some _real _rest, not whatever facsimile he'd tried last night, but when she moved her hand lower, incredibly, he caught it.

"'s okay. You don't have to." He sounded so wrung out and defeated.

She dared to move her kisses down his jawline. "You don't think it'll make you feel a little better? You don't deserve to feel like this today. Let me help." She smiled against his skin at the moan she drew out of him. "Then go to sleep. I'll stay."

"Pep…" He abruptly pushed her to arm's length and stared at her as if he couldn't believe she was real. She smiled and reached for the collar of her shirt.

"Say yes," she urged. His expression was naked pain, too naked. _Well, at least we can get naked literally to help with the figurative part. _Tony nodded at last, mouth half-open, and she got busy with her own clothes. He was still fumbling at his with trembling hands when she joined him. "Just relax. Let me take care of you."

"Should be the – other way…" he croaked, reaching for her waist. As wrecked as he was, body memory kicked in, and soon Pepper was trying to remember how the hell to handle the complexities of buttons and zippers as his hands slid under her breasts. Finally, she had them both undressed and pressed him back onto the bed, covering him with her own body. Tony moaned as she got back to work on his neck.

It was cool in the hotel room; between that and the things Tony was doing with his mouth, gooseflesh rose on Pepper's skin. Tony wrinkled his nose at her, at last distracted, and started fumbling with one hand at the made-up bedclothes. It didn't really work, so Pepper tugged him upright, and the two of them sent all the decorative pillows flying in every direction until they could pull the duvet and top sheet free and crawl under them.

It would make things a little tight, but whatever. They'd manage. And Pepper wanted Tony to feel safe and warm. She climbed back on top of him and pulled the duvet over them both. Tony started to squirm down, but she stopped him. "You'll suffocate." Tony's indignant protest was muffled by a deep kiss, and she guided his hand down to her legs. _This isn't about me today. _He'd argue if she said that out loud and insist on going down on her, so she just kept her face close to his, kissing and starting to gasp as his fingers slid between her legs.

Body memory really was an amazing thing; as exhausted and distracted as he was, Tony Stark still knew damn well what he was doing. More than once she had to stop him. "Slow down," she panted into his mouth. He grinned, relaxing as she shivered against him. She wanted this to last, to chase away the outside world for a little while so he could sleep without nightmares. And it certainly didn't cause her any problems to be slowly taken apart under Tony's hands.

"God, you're beautiful," he breathed when she threw her head back in response to his expert strokes. She pulled herself back to him and kissed him hard and deep as heat built and built, and this time she didn't stop him. He knew she hated yelling in hotels where the sound-proofing was uncertain; she was just too self-conscious. So he was watching for when her muscles finally released and muffled her voice with his mouth, his lips, his tongue, and Pepper held onto him so tight it was a miracle she didn't break his ribs as her orgasm swelled and carried her on a wave of pleasure.

"So beautiful," Tony murmured, watching her as she shuddered against him. She stroked his cheekbones, wanting to tell him he wasn't so bad-looking himself, but she'd lost all use of English. Oh well. She gave him the message with delicate little kisses and nibbles along those fine bones, past his ear to his jaw until he was whimpering. Then she pressed his eyes closed with her fingertips and kissed each of them gently as she moved over him.

Pepper'd discovered years ago that who was on top could be affected by or influence Tony's mood. If he wanted to top, he felt good, confident, strong. But if he felt the opposite, having her on top made him feel safe. So she shifted herself over him and got down to work with her fingertips. Getting him ready didn't take long at all; he'd been half-hard the whole time he'd been taking care of her.

Once he was fully hard, she sank down onto him, and he clapped a hand over his mouth to muffle a moan. Pepper leaned forward, trembling from the sensation of being filled with him, then shifted herself back so her body was as close to him as she could manage.

_I'm here. Right here, as close as we can possibly be. You're safe. Forget everything else. _He held himself back from moving right away, but he was smiling as he kissed her, basking in the sensation of being inside her. _That's it. Just enjoy it. Let everything go. _

Tony just lay there, gazing up at her with bright eyes until Pepper couldn't take it anymore and started moving, slowly, damn-near purring at the sensation of moving around him. Finally, Tony reached up and ran his fingers into her hair, tugging gently to kiss her as he started to speed up, thrusting upward into her. Pepper groaned and mouthed at his chin as the increasing rhythm had her panting.

He was so hard it had to be painful, and Pepper pulled her scattered thoughts together and started encouraging him with her hand between his legs. "Come on," she breathed, kissing his neck. "Come on. Give it to me."

As her finger traced the cleft of his ass, she had him, and Tony fell from their rhythm into stuttering movements and gasps of "Pepper!" as she felt him come inside her. "Oh, God, Jesus fucking Christ…"

Pepper laughed and kept stroking him through the shudders. "I'd rather keep this just between us, thanks."

Glassy-eyed, Tony finally focused on her and nipped at her nose. "Don' worry, I know better than to think you're an angel."

She pulled back in mock-outrage. "Are you saying I'm a creature of the devil?"

"Aren't all women? Corrupting the pure souls of men…" Pepper laughed so hard she snorted. "Seducing a weary and careworn male with your feminine wiles, leading me into sin…" She scrabbled for his ribs, intending to tickle him, but Tony actually squealed. "You can't tickle me, you're trying to soothe my tormented brow" -

She settled for poking him a few times. "Brat. If anyone's done the corrupting in this relationship, it's you!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

_Damn it! _She pulled herself back on top of him, even though they were both a little _too _warm now. "That was not an invitation to go melancholy on me again, Tony, otherwise I'll have to ride you again until we both drop dead."

"What a way to go," Tony groaned, but to her relief, he smiled as he played with her mussed, sweaty hair. "Damn, another round would be great, but…" He broke off with a tremendous yawn that had Pepper honest-to-God giggling.

"The whole point of this was to make you get some rest." She shoved all the bedcovers off them except the top sheet and tugged him onto the pillows next to her. He looked at her with soft eyes and touched her face. She scooted up against him and nuzzled him. "Go to sleep, superhero. The world'll need saving before too long."

"'s never long," he murmured.

He lay staring up at her, eyes wet and anxious. There was that damn melancholy again. _Damn it. Out of all the times I wish you'd question yourself more, this isn't supposed to be one of them! _

Was that fair? In some ways, Pepper knew she expected too little from Tony. In others…like now, maybe she expected too much. So she pulled him against her and kissed him, long and gentle. "Go to sleep. I'll stay."

He closed his eyes, but murmured, "'s always too soon, b'fore we're ready."

She pressed kisses between his eyes, to both cheeks, down his mouth and chin so he couldn't talk. "Maybe, but it's not _now._ So you can sleep, Tony. I'm here. If something comes up, someone'll knock. Don't worry about what's going on out there. Just rest."

He mumbled something completely unintelligible – well, it sounded a bit like "I love you so much" – and drifted off with his nose in her neck. Pepper stroked his hair and his bare skin, murmuring nonsense and even humming a little to make sure he'd slip into dreams without nightmares and terror chasing him.

Only when she was sure he was sleeping calmly did she let herself drift off too.

The world could wait a little longer for Iron Man _and _Tony Stark.

**~Fin~**

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